Popping the cork in S.J.

Friday

Jun 28, 2013 at 12:01 AM

Lodi-area wines captured three Best of California prizes at the California State Fair, selected from among more than 2,600 entries in the commercial wine competition as among the 26 best examples of a given wine.

Reed Fujii

Lodi-area wines captured three Best of California prizes at the California State Fair, selected from among more than 2,600 entries in the commercial wine competition as among the 26 best examples of a given wine.

Named the Best Zinfandel in the state was the 2011 Adventurous Zinfandel from Macchia Wines in Acampo; Michael-David Vineyards in Lodi got the nod for Best Other Red for its 2010 Inkblot Tannat; and Best Riesling honors went to a boxed wine, Target's Wine Cube, produced from Lodi grapes by Trincheo Family Estates.

It's the fourth time in the dozen years that it's been operating that Macchia has won a Best of California award, previously for a petit sirah, barbera and another zinfandel, said Lani Holdener, who owns and operates Macchia with her husband and winemaker, Tim.

"It never gets old," she said. "I have high expectations for my husband, and he has never let me down."

Grapes for the fair winner came from the Linsteadt Vineyard in Amador County, which has been a steady source for Macchia. "That's always been one of our favorites," Holdener said.

She recalled naming the wine in Macchia's first year, at a time when table wines typically topped out at 13 to 14 percent alcohol.

It was dubbed Adventurous after tests showed a surprising 16.5 percent alcohol while remaining a well-balanced wine, Holdener said.

The 2011 vintage came in at a slightly more modest 15.3 percent alcohol.

Inkblot is among Michael-David Winery's newest brands, featuring a Rorschach-test-inspired label, developed a few years ago to feature unusual but especially dark-colored varietal wines, including petit verdot and cabernet franc.

Tannat is the rarest of Ink Blot wines, with only 800 cases in the current release, winery co-owner Dave Phillips said. "It's a pretty obscure grape."

"Tannat is one of the darkest and most tannic grapes grown in the world," he said. In Lodi, it is grown on Phillip's vineyards, as well as by the Duarte Family and Ron Silva.

Originally intended as a wine-club-only offering, Ink Blot wines have hit a responsive chord and are now distributed nationally, Phillips said.

"It's opening doors for us, especially in the AAA restaurant world," he said. "We need to have something different to get on those wine lists, something that's intriguing to those sommeliers out there."

The Wine Cube has been opening doors for Target Corp., which is the exclusive retailer for the boxed wine produced by Trinchero Family Estates. Since the original 3-liter cube was offered in 2003 with four wine varieties, the line has grown to a dozen varieties - including the fair prize-winning riesling - in 3-liter and 1.5-liter boxes and 500-milliliter, single-serving Tetra packs, said Nora Feeley, Trinchero's public relations director.

What the state fair results demonstrate, she said, "Don't judge a wine by its package; the quality is there."

And the success of the Wine Cube, after 10 years on the market, shows its appeal to consumers as well.

"The packaging is convenient, and it's environmentally friendly," she said. "We like to say, 'Think inside the box.' "